NAMM: WorkingPro Series from SWR

WorkingPro 400 (Click for a close-up)

WorkingPro 700 (Click for a close-up)

WorkingPro 1x15 Cabinet (Click for a close-up)

SWR is introducing the WorkingPro Series, a brand new line of amplifiers and speaker cabinets, at this year's NAMM show in Anaheim, CA.

The WorkingPro Series is built on the success of SWR's midline Workingman's Series, but with a ground-up cosmetic and mechanical redesign, modernized electronic construction, brand new tone-shaping features, beefier and more effective power delivery, and a brand-new 5-year transferable warranty.

The line is anchored by two new rack-mountable amplifiers. The WorkingPro 700 delivers 700 watts at 4 ohms, while the WorkingPro 400 drives 400 watts at the same commonly-used load. Each amplifier comes equipped with a four-band active EQ, SWR's Aural Enhancer tone-shaping circuit, an automatic limiter/compressor with defeat option, pre/post XLR output, side-chain effects loop, and dual Speakon and 1/4" speaker outputs. But it's SWR's newest feature that really makes these amps stand out: the Bass Intensifier circuit.

Bassists constantly demand more powerful reproduction of low and lower midrange frequencies, and with SWR's Bass Intensifier they have the tool to deliver the extra boom without requiring additional power. The circuit allows the player to select a group of frequencies, starting at 20 Hz and ending at anywhere from 80 Hz to 800 Hz, and simultaneously boost and compress them for a thicker, more intense bass response. According to the company, it takes a 400 watt amplifier and makes it sound like a 700 watt amplifier -- and takes a 700 watt amplifier and makes it sound like a 1,000 watt monster.

Also new for the WorkingPro heads is a Tuning Mute, which allows for silent tuning onstage -- always handy in this age where 'E' is tuned down to 'D' and 'B' is tuned down to 'A' on a frighteningly regular basis. Both the Tuning Mute and the Bass Intensifier are footswitchable, and a two-button footswitch comes with each WorkingPro head.

Also being introduced are four new WorkingPro Series speaker cabinets: a 400-watt 4x10, a 200-watt 2x10, a 200-watt 1x15 and a 100-watt 1x10. Each comes equipped with custom-specified SWR drivers, tweeters with variable attenuators, dual Speakon and 1/4" input and output jacks, shock-mounted vibration-free grills, and a sleek new black-and-chrome look that emulates the Goliath III 4x10 cabinet, SWR's flagship speaker enclosure.